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It’s a great American tradition: we stuff ourselves with too many turkeys, pies, and side dishes on Thanksgiving, spend money like drunken sailors on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and tell ourselves that all the shopping is justified because we “save” money with those great deals. Then, on Giving Tuesday, it is time to consider what charitable organizations or causes we want to support.
Americans are the most generous people in the world. Philanthropy Roundtable finds, “Six out of ten U.S. households donate to charity in a given year, and the typical household’s annual gifts add up to between two and three thousand dollars.” Per capita, “Americans voluntarily donate about seven times as much as continental Europeans. Even our cousins, the Canadians, give to charity at substantially lower rates and at half the total volume of an American household.”
Some people donate to the same organizations annually. Others may switch organizations or causes, depending on their life-altering experiences. The latter is undoubtedly the case for my husband and me. Before we lost our precious children, our annual giving was more towards our alma mater and political causes. After losing our babies, we have shifted our charitable giving to organizations that either focus on education and welfare for underprivileged kids or look after families who have lost children.
The organizations we choose to support are those that are either founded by locals or have a solid local presence. The locality is essential to us for three reasons. First, a charity founded by locals is usually a response to the needs of the surrounding community, often ignored by large and national organizations. Since the founders also reside in the same communities and typically have shared experiences, a local-based organization knows well what the affected group needs the most and can deliver the services quickly.
Second, a local charity usually doesn’t have layers of bureaucracy and operating expenses like national organizations do. Thus, rather than paying for fancy offices and outrageous salaries for their executives, a small, locally based charity ensures that most of the giving will go to those with the most needs, as donors intended. Last but not least, a small, locally based charity often has limited funding and doesn’t have the resources to do much fundraising. So, even a small donation makes a big difference to them. Additionally, for local donors, there is the immediate satisfaction of seeing your money make a difference in your community.
If you live in metro Denver counties and are looking for recommendations of wonderful local nonprofit organizations to support this year, here are my favorites:
A Precious Child: It is headquartered in Broomfield and serves the eight Denver Metro counties. The organization’s mission is to provide “children in need with opportunities and resources to empower them to achieve their full potential.” We like the organization’s variety of programs for kids, from academic excellence to sports and mentorship for older kids. Another reason we like this organization is that they keep a lean operation. According to its annual financial disclosure, over 90 percent of donations it receives have gone to its programs to benefit needy kids.
My husband is an enthusiastic supporter of the organization’s “Fill a Backpack” program, which provides children in need with backpacks filled with grade-appropriate school supplies so these kids can maximize their academic potential.
Since becoming a supporter of this program, my husband shops for backpacks and school supplies throughout the year and drops them off at the “A Precious Child” office location at the start of the back-to-school season. He told me such a program had given him a sense of purpose and satisfaction to help other children in our community.
Walk with Me: WWM is headquartered in Denver and was founded by parents who lost their baby boy during pregnancy. Pregnancy loss and infant death are sad realities in life that too many people and large organizations are either unaware of or have chosen not to do anything about. WWM cares for families who received a terminal diagnosis during their pregnancies and decided to carry their pregnancies so they could be with their unborn child as long as they could. The organization also supports families who have experienced pregnancy loss and infant deaths by sending thoughtful care packages to hospitals, covering the cost of counseling for grieving families, helping the families honor and celebrate the lives of their children, and many more.
I have benefited from many of WWM’s services after losing my precious children, Lucas and Allie. One of the thoughtful memorial gifts I received from WWM was a teddy bear. It wears a name tag saying Lucas and weighs the same as Lucas’ birth weight. Whenever I hug the Lucas bear, I am flooded with emotions, as if I were holding him in my arms again. Another considerate gift I received from WWM was a picture of the night sky on May 14, 2018, when Lucas was born. Undoubtedly, Lucas is one of those shining stars looking at me from that night on. Only parents who lost babies themselves know how to come up with caring gifts like these for other grieving families.
Another reason I love WWM is that their volunteers respect families’ wishes and will go out of their way to help families honor their children in ways they see fit. For four years, WWM helped me purchase cuddle cots from the UK, a cooling device that gave the grieving family time to say goodbye to their child. WWM also identified and contacted hospitals needing such a device so we could donate it in honor of Lucas and Allie.
WWM has the most thoughtful and dedicated volunteers. It is one of the best nonprofit organizations in the Denver metro area.
Two other national organizations we support that have a strong presence and impact in Colorado are MindsMatter Colorado and Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep.
Minds Matter helps “high-achieving students from low-income neighborhoods reach the college of their choice with 100% success” by providing mentorships, sponsoring trips to summer programs, and helping with college preparations. It has chapters throughout major cities in the United States, and you can look up local chapters in your area here. MM Colorado is one of the largest chapters and a fast-growing one.
My husband has volunteered for MM Colorado for 16 years as a mentor and now as its summer program director. He often receives panic text messages or phone calls in the middle of the night or early morning from kids stranded at airports, either on their way to or coming back from a summer program, and is unsure what to do next.
Since 2018, we have set up a memorial scholarship for MM Colorado students, and all four recipients are girls who are the first generation of their families to go to college. A local TV station recently recognized my husband as one of the “Everyday Heroes” in Colorado.
Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep (NILMDTS) is headquartered in Denver, but it has grown into an international organization. The organization sends volunteer photographers to take remembrance pictures for families who lost their babies. Their photos are professionally done and tasteful. My family is one of beneficiaries of NILMDTS’ service. Those photos of us with Lucas are some of the most treasured in our house.
This world has many tragedies and heartbreaks, but “a kind gesture can reach a wound that only compassion can heal” (Steve Maraboli). I hope you find the calling in your heart and make a kind gesture this holiday season. May God bless you and your family.